The authors compared treatment results for 141 schizophrenic patients
randomly assigned to short-term or long-term hospitalization. Test results
indicated that the long-term group was functioning significantly better one
year after admission according to global measures only. The authors caution
that the differences between the two groups, although statistically
reliable, were modest and may have been confounded by the amount of
psychotherapy the patients received after hospitalization. Although there
appears to be a general advantage to the long-term approach, further work
will be needed to identify patient subgroups for whom this more expensive
treatment is cost effective.Abstract Teaser